Spawn 1.5

I stared at the vending machine impassively. You would logically assume that a hospital vending machine would be filled with healthy foods. Packaged fruits, granola and protein bars, but no. Brockton General at least, had its vending machines stocked to the gills with junk food instead. Though there was its own logic to that as well; anyone in a hospital was going to need comfort food.

I certainly did.

There was plenty to choose from: Snickers, Reese's, an unhealthy amount of Sun Chips, and… Milk Duds? I shrugged, why not. I was feeling particularly duddy today anyway.

As the vending machine slowly worked its magic, I glanced up at the nearby clock. I'd been with Emma for a good fifteen minutes now. Another five wouldn't be unreasonable, I thought. Twenty minutes was downright sane compared to the amount of time I used to spend with her. Mom would understand, she always did.

When I grabbed my Milk Duds from the vending machine, I saw a pair of familiar figures reflected in the glass step behind me. I let out a small sigh and smiled.

"Jessica ratted me out?"

"No, we're in the habit of checking Emma's room whenever we're here though." responded the taller of the two.

I stood back up and faced them, the Dallon sisters. Victoria and Amy Dallon were night and day in appearance. The former was nearly as tall as me, with spotless skin and platinum blonde hair. Beautiful really, the kind of idealized beauty I wished I had. Her sister on the other hand, was on the shorter side and the definition of mousy. Frizzy brown curled hair, more freckles than skin and very tired eyes. They were, both of them, members of the super hero team New Wave.

Unlike the Protectorate, New Wave was an independent group of heroes that operated under the idea of accountability. While I hadn't seen much of that in action, this mostly translated to the entire team having public identities. A decision that seemed to bite them in the ass more than it helped.

But, in spite of all of that, Vicky and Amy were good people. Amy's powers let her heal people of essentially any illness with a touch. Which meant she spent a lot of time at the various hospitals in Brockton Bay. Three guesses how she and I met. Vicky on the other hand was a fairly standard Alexandria package as far as I could tell; flight, super strength, general invulnerability. Usually if you found Amy somewhere, Vicky wasn't too far behind. She was very protective of her sister, and over the last two years, had extended some of this protection to me.

That was why she immediately enveloped me in a hug when I turned to face them. I sighed and returned it, "I'm okay Vicky, really."

The blonde pulled back and squinted at me, "And that's why your eyes are red and puffy. Come on Taylor, I'm not stupid. You're eating Milk Duds."

"Yeah, so?" I demanded, "I was feeling duddy."

"And that's how we know there's a problem." Vicky poked my nose for emphasis and smiled.

I frowned, "What's wrong with Milk Duds?"

"Taylor," Amy interrupted before Vicky could go off on her preferred rant over the important intricacies of the candy hierarchy, "You haven't visited in two weeks. We were both understandably concerned. The last time that happened was because you were afraid to leave your house."

I bit my lip, that unfortunate month had done a good job of teaching me to be more careful when I fought back against Sophia. That girl was thorough in her vengeance; if it hadn't been for the Empire launching a huge assault on ABB territory, I might have turned into a full blown recluse.

For a moment I considered blowing off their concern. After all, I didn't have to visit Emma every week. As insensitive as it might be to say, she wasn't exactly going anywhere. But my dismissal was cut off by the concern written upon their faces. I had to remind myself that I wasn't at Winslow anymore. These two had been there for me at my most emotionally vulnerable over the last two years. I owed them more respect than that.

A quick glance down the hall in both directions showed that the coast was clear. I sighed and said, "I'm not in any trouble. The reason I haven't visited is because… I have powers."

There was a moment of stunned silence. Vicky's jaw visibly dropped as I told them the truth. Already I could see a thousand and one questions forming, the gears slowly churning behind her eyes.

"Well no shit." Amy said.

Vicky and I both turned to her sister, stunned. She smiled ever so slightly, "Taylor, my powers give me an in depth understanding of the biology of anyone I touch. I've known you've had powers since the day we met."

"Wait, what?" Vicky looked aghast at her sister, "You knew this whole time and never said anything?"

"I thought she might be a Wildcard." Amy shrugged. "No new heroines popped up in the last two years and she never talked to us about it. Unlike some people, Vicky, I respect other people's privacy on these things."

To my surprise, Vicky did not take the time to quip back at her sister. Instead, I was given another hug by the blonde. A much gentler hug compared to the first one, "I'm so sorry Taylor. If I'd known, or you said something…"

"Therapy was the last thing on my mind, Vicky," I said, then added, "But thank you."

She frowned, "Still, if you do need counseling…"

"I'm good." I interrupted, "The last thing I want is to talk about what happened."

Another frown. New Wave had, in the last few years, become very vocal supporters of mental health in the cape community. They sponsored several well known therapists on the Eastern Seaboard and had helped reform several former villains. I still remembered how shocked everyone was when the Marquis had been the defining figure in taking down Jack Slash.

But I didn't really want to talk with anyone about my trigger event. The day that had given me my powers was… painful, and I would rather leave it behind me. I didn't say that aloud of course, as I knew that if I did I'd get a very long lecture from both sisters. Instead I steered the conversation away from the topic of triggering trauma as quickly as I could.

"I'm not a Wildcard," I told Amy, "But I am… what is it, Aimless?"

"You've been spending too much time on the message boards." Vicky snorted.

Amy rolled her eyes, "You have an idea of how your power works, but you have to experiment to figure out the details?"

"Yeah, that." I nodded, "I've spent the last two years working it all out and putting it together. But I've been cautious about it because I'm a…"

Again, I checked the halls before gesturing to the two to get closer. We huddled in front of the vending machine and I whispered, "I'm a bio-tinker. I can create new lifeforms to fit… niches. Like, anything I create is a component of some great plan or ecosystem."

Vicky and Amy exchanged equally surprised looks. Then Vicky smiled and wrapped an arm around Amy, "And now you're not the only bio-tinker in Brockton Bay. Congrats!"

Amy ignored her and looked at me seriously, "Taylor, this is… big. Bio-tinkers are, well.. You know about Ellisburg, and Florida still hasn't recovered from what Bonesaw did to it. How are you handling it?"

"Well, the Protectorate seemed happy to take me." I admitted.

Both girls made noises of disgust.

"You can't be serious." Vicky whined, "The Protectorate? Really? Taylor, I thought you were better than that!"

"It wasn't my choice!" I protested.

I added, much softer, "Mom caught me and… well, that was that."

That put to bed any further complaining the two might have had. I flushed as they exchanged looks of fear. None of us saw eye to eye on everything, but there was one thing that we could all agree on.

"Taylor, have we ever told you how terrifying your mom is?" Vicky asked me. Amy nodded fiercely beside her, staring a thousand yards down the hospital corridor.

I covered my face and groaned, "Multiple times, yes. It was either the Protectorate, or a lifetime grounding. I wasn't spoiled for choice."

"I guess that's fair." Amy conceded.

"Yeah, we can't rib you over that" Vicky agreed, before a slow grin spread over her face.

Oh no.

"But we can rib ya until you show us what you've been working on."

There it was.

I knew better than to argue this point with Vicky. We would try to out stubborn each other until someone went home with a headache. Better to de-escalate now and just accept defeat… for now. If they wanted to meet Kri'ket, that was perfectly reasonable.

Besides, what was the worst that could happen?

I led the Dallon sisters out back where mom had parked the car. With Kri'ket in the car, we had thought it better to avoid the more crowded front lot. Subtlety was, in this particular instance, the preferred option.

As we rounded the corner, I spotted mom leaning on the fender of the car. A cigarette was burning brightly between her lips. I almost stumbled at the sight; mom jumped when she saw me, the cigarette tumbling to the ground at her feet. She very hurriedly stamped it out and put on a smile as Vicky and Amy quickly rounded the corner behind me.

"Girls! What a pleasant surprise to see you both again!" Mom said, very quickly filling the air before I could get a word in on what I'd just seen.

That was fine. I could be patient.

"Hi Mrs. H." they chorused.

"We're just stopping by to look at Taylor's little pet project," Vicky explained.

Mom smiled, "Ah, well said project is taking a bit of a nap at the moment, so try and look quietly."

There was a silent agreement among the three of us as we approached the car door. My bitter mood evaporated and my heart melted. Kri'ket was currently a ball of pale blue scales curled up in the backseat of the car, save for his tail that hung off the side of the seat. Occasionally it twitched, a reaction to whatever it was the little lizard dreamt of.

Amy bit down on her knuckles, while Vicky covered her mouth and bounced in place. A faint but audible squeal of pure delight was muffled by her fingers. I couldn't help but smile with pride. My intention had always been to make Kri'ket unthreatening to the average person, and seeing that I had succeeded was an amazing feeling.

And then Kri'kets eye snapped open, the iris shrunk to the size of a pinhole. Vicky and Amy jerked away from the window, as Kri'ket sat up and stared at them through the window. His crest stood up straight, and lips parted in a snarl. He was nearly feral in his appearance, the most inhuman I'd ever seen him so far.

Vicky grabbed Amy on instinct, and barely stopped from shoving her sister behind her. Kri'kets threat display slowly faded as he realized mom and I were nearby. The car door clicked open and he poked his slender head out.

"You startled me," he hissed matter-of-factly.

"It speaks!" Amy squeaked.

I frowned, "He speaks. And he is Kri'ket."

"Are these more Wards?" Kri'ket asked, looking between the sisters.

Vicky snorted, "Thankfully, no. Taylor hasn't told you about us?"

"There's been a lot to cover." I answered.

Kri'ket nodded, "We have been very busy."

"Hm, I guess you're off the hook for now," Vicky said, her tone playfully threatening.

I rolled my eyes, while Amy looked closer at Kri'ket, "You're… wow, you really made him, Taylor?"

"In an old boat by the bay, yep." I said, making no attempt to hide my pride.

Amy's face contorted into a curious mask of contemplation. I recognized the expression on her face and knew exactly what she was thinking. If her thinker powers worked at all like mine, she was probably burning to know what exactly made Kri'ket think.

"Taylor, I know it's kind of weird to ask, but can I…um…" she paused, not sure how to phrase her question.

I gestured at Kri'ket, "Ask him, it's his call."

Kri'kets crest went flat, "Ask what?"

"I'm a bio-tinker, like Taylor." Amy explained, "But I can… understand how people and things work just by touching them. I've never seen anything like you and I'm kind of sort of incredibly curious."

"We've found it better to let her sate her curiosity instead of repressing it." Vicky added. "Makes for healthier impulse control."

Kri'ket looked at me, a questioning expression on his face. I gave a short nod, and he repeated it to Amy. She reached out with a shaking hand and touched a finger to his forehead. Again, I smirked to myself when her eyes went wide.

"Holy… and you made him in a boat? With a box of scraps?"

I made no attempt to hide my grin, "Yep. In secret, for si- I mean two months." I quickly corrected myself when I remembered mom was here. She looked at me with a raised eyebrow but stayed silent. That might have been worse.

Amy's eyes remained wide as she soaked in information on Kri'kets biology. "This is like… hyper-advanced metabolism shit going on. How much does he eat in a day?"

"One meal, usually meat of some kind." I explained. "I wanted to make a creature that left minimal waste and needed little food to operate. He can eat more, but he could subsist on bugs and grubs for a month if he had to. I think. That was the idea, I never got to actually test it and don't plan on it."

"I do like grubs though." Kri'ket added helpfully.

Amy withdrew her hand, and looked at me with newfound respect, "If this is what you could make with subpar materials, I can't even imagine what you'll make with the Protectorate backing you."

"I uh… don't know myself honestly." I admitted with a nervous laugh. "My plan was to make more Kri'kets, but I don't… have any idea what to make in addition to that."

Kri'ket cocked his head at me. I quickly added, "Mostly because I need to see how things will evolve once I have more of him running around. Plans change and all that."

This satisfied him, and the little lizard gave a sage nod. Amy turned from him and fixed me with big pleading eyes, "Taylor, please. Let me be involved in this. I have to see how this unfolds."

Vicky leaned in next to her sister, "I just wanna see more of the cute lizard bois. But yeah, you are going to invite us to your insane tinker lab, right?"

"That will depend on the Protectorate." I sighed. "Talk to them. There's a lot of red tape."

Amy sighed, and Vicky smirked. "You should've signed up with New Wave." she teased in a sing-song voice.

Mom didn't say anything, but she did clear her throat at that comment. Kri'ket looked from her to the sisters, and asked, "New Wave? I know the name. But I know nothing else."

Vicky smiled at him, "We're an independent cape group. We work with the Protectorate, but we keep public identities so we can be held accountable for our actions while operating without government oversight."

Kri'ket seemed to mull over this for a minute then looked at Vicky and said in the driest tone I'd ever heard from him, "So you're stupid?"

"Kri'ket!" I scolded, absolutely mortified.

Amy covered her mouth in shock and Vicky stood dumbfounded. There was a moment of painful silence as everyone registered his words. Then Vicky surprised me by laughing.

"Oh god! You really are Taylor's creation! She said exactly that when we first met?"

I blinked, "Wait… I did?"

Vicky suppressed a giggle, "Yeah, when we first met. You were a bitter little bitch at the time. Didn't want anything to do with anyone. Told us to our faces we were idiots for what we do. But well… you were an emotional wreck at the time. If anything, I saw it as a challenge!"

Amy ran her hand over her face and sighed, "You see everything as a challenge."

"Yes, but that's besides the point. Seems the apple doesn't fall far from the tree."

I felt relieved. Vicky was pretty good at letting things slide off her shoulders when it came to friends, but she was also very protective of New Wave in general. Guess when it came to friends, some self-deprecation was okay.

Vicky leaned on the car and kept smiling even as she changed the subject, "So, Protectorate now huh? Drop the dirt for us, we gonna see you at Arcadia?"

"Well…"

I brought them up to speed on what had transpired the past few days, while leaving out Kri'kets ability to imitate tinker tech, for the moment. I didn't agree with everything the Protectorate wanted out of us, but I agreed that keeping quiet on that was important right now. So I filled them in on the lab, my school situation, and the role I would be playing in the Protectorate. Right now it was basically just PRT support, but that could change depending on what I cooked up. I honestly wasn't sure.

We said our goodbyes shortly after, and I waved them off as they returned to the hospital, before climbing in the car with Kri'ket and mom. Once I was settled in the passenger seat, I looked over my shoulder at Kri'ket and said, "Remind me, we need to work on your tact and manners. Even if New Wave is dumb about secret identities, there were better ways to phrase it."

"Wouldn't that be lying?" Kri'ket asked, his voice far too sincere for my liking.

I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose, "It's… complicated. You're young, so you're not in trouble. But we'll get it figured out as we go, okay?"

Kri'ket nodded, "I will endeavor to improve."

I smiled and then sank back into my seat, exhausted. The good news though, was that said exhaustion had torn away at the bitter emotions my visit to Emma had produced. I was excited to see what would become of the lab, and finally leaving Winslow behind. For the first time in a long time, things were improving.

Mom coughed into her hand, an involuntary gesture. A frown filled my face. Well, things were almost improving. I reached for the glove box, pulled out a mint, and handed it to mom without a word.

It was an awkward drive home.

A/N: So believe it or not, this chapter was not delayed due to writers block or depression.

I actually completely forgot about this story. I wrote out like 3/4 of it and then got distracted by... something, and just forgot it existed. One of my writer friends reminded me of it and well.. here it is!

Sorry about the ridiculous wait, I hope it was worth it?

Please proceed to yell at me, I deserve it. Barring that, leave your usual comments and constructive criticisms down below, and I'll see you guys (Hopefully) sooner rather than later! Bye!